Due to recent advances in technology, computer users are now able to enjoy many features that provide an improved user experience, such as playing various media and multimedia content on personal, laptop, or handheld computers, as well as cellular phones and other portable media devices. For example, most computers today are able to play compact discs (CDs) and have an internet connection capable of streaming and downloading audio and video so users can listen to their favorite media while working on their computers. Many computers are also equipped with digital versatile disc (DVD) drives enabling users to watch movies.
In some multimedia environments, a computer has access to a computer-readable medium storing media files such as Moving Picture Experts Group audio layer-3 (MP3) files and WINDOWS MEDIA technologies audio (WMA) and video files. The computer typically organizes the media files into playlists when the compressed media files are played on the computer.
Conventionally, users must expend considerable time and energy to build a playlist of media items (e.g., video files, music files, photos, etc.) of any complexity. Media items must be individually selected and added to each playlist. In addition to the effort required, users may also have difficulty constructing a playlist including each of the media items they desire. For example, remembering the name of each particular media item (or artist, genre, creator, creation date, style, etc.) to include in a playlist is difficult. This inability to recall each desirable media item can lead to a user-created playlist that includes only a few common media items familiar to the user. Such a playlist can be mundane, repetitive, and generally not pleasing, even to the user who created it.
The issue of recalling media items of interest is exacerbated with the era of online media libraries, such as for music and other audio, movies and other video, among others. For example, a single user can subscribe to a media service (e.g., a subscription service) having over a million available media items. Such a subscription simply provides too many choices for a single user to review and consider for a playlist.
Media enthusiasts are capable of creating their own playlists media item by media item. For example, such users may wish to hand pick their playlists so that the playlist exactly reflects their vision for the playlist. These users are not typically interested in having a playlist automatically created by a system or program. Even so, such media enthusiasts may still wish to have some assistance from a system or program in creating a list of potential media item choices. Such a user may find suggestions of media items beneficial, such that playlist authoring may be made easier and quicker, but not automatic. In other words, sophisticated listeners may enjoy a limited amount of help, while retaining ultimate control of the playlist authoring process. Moreover, media enthusiasts may wish to review media item suggestions based upon measurable characteristics (e.g., audio characteristics, bibliographical metadata, commercially or community generated subjective/editorial metadata, etc.).
Unfortunately, these issues are not addressed by any conventional system. Conventional techniques provide only limited amounts of assistance to the user in creating playlists, such as sorting by media type or artist. Such conventional techniques provide no suggestion of media items based upon media items or related media selected by the user. There is a need, therefore, for a system or method capable of providing intelligent suggestions to users without taking control over the playlist authoring process. In other words, the system or method assists the user in playlist creation by offering media item suggestions associated with a seed provided by the user, but without altering any user playlist without express selection of particular media item suggestions by the user. Accordingly, a solution that enhances playlist creation by providing media item suggestions based upon characteristics of user seed selections is desired.